Roane State Community College

March 11, 2025

Roane State’s Center for Health Sciences will host a MEDIC blood drive on campus later this month amid low inventory in East Tennessee.

The event will be held in the parking lot of the campus, located at 132 Hayfield Drive in Knoxville, from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. ET on March 26, 2025. Walk-ins are welcome.

Appointments are available online at tndonor.org/donor/schedules – just enter “Knoxville” in the search bar, narrow by date, and select the Roane State event to view available time slots.

MEDIC Regional Blood Center reported last month that blood and platelet inventory was low and that all blood types were needed, especially platelets and O-negative blood. On February 17, MEDIC also joined several other blood banks around the country going into on-call status to create a blood reserve in case of an emergency.

“We encourage everyone who is able to donate blood to join us as we work with MEDIC to boost critical blood supplies in East Tennessee,” said David Blevins, director of the college’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) programs. “Our EMT and Paramedic students know first-hand how often blood donations save lives. Together with the community, we hope we can break the single-event donation record at this campus.”

Those planning to donate should be in good health and remember to drink plenty of water and eat a healthy meal ahead of time.

MEDIC also advises donors to bring identification and know which medications you have taken recently. Find out if you are eligible to donate at medicblood.org/eligibility.

Donors will receive a free MEDIC gift as well as a coupon for Texas Roadhouse. For more information about MEDIC Regional Blood Center, visit medicblood.org.